News from the Regions

Notes from the Field

Our regional offices have been hard at work on local, state, and regional challenges. Here's an overview of a few of those issues.

BLM Plan to Open Entire National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska to Oil Drilling Hotly Contested

In January 2005, the BLM finalized a plan to open 100 percent of the area to oil and gas leasing. We do not oppose drilling in the reserve, but the most ecologically sensitive areas should be left alone. Read More...

Forest Service Seeks to Redefine What Are Roadless Areas on Pacific Northwest National Forests

There are four million acres of inventoried roadless lands in the 19 national forests of Oregon and Washington. How much of this land should be made part of the National Wilderness Preservation System and thus be protected forever? Read More...

Logging Old-Growth Under the Guise of 'Research'

The U.S. Forest Service wants to log large tracts of old growth in Sierra National Forest, which lies along the southern border of Yosemite National Park, in the name of "scientific research." Read More...

Wilderness Society Helps Stop ORV Trail in Lost River Valley

The Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation has abandoned its effort to create a 460-mile trail for off-road vehicle use on federal lands running northeast from Arco to Challis through the scenic Lost River and Pahsimeroi Valleys. Read More...

Missouri Breaks National Monument Management Plan Proposed by BLM

To guide management of this monument for the next 20 years, the Bureau of Land Management has drafted a plan dealing with off-road vehicle use, wildlife, and related issues. Read More...

Legislation to Designate Wilderness in Rocky Mountain National Park Introduced in Congress

Congress has never acted on a Park Service proposal to designate Wilderness in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. That could change, with legislation to do so recently introduced. Read More...

Land Acquisition Bond To Be On Ballot In Maine

The Maine legislature has voted to put a two-year, $10 million land acquisition bond on the November 2005 ballot. Passage of the bond would keep alive the highly successful Land for Maine’s Future Program. Read More...

Monongahela National Forest Proposal Comes Up Short

The U.S. Forest Service wants to triple logging, increase the size of clearcuts from 25 to 40 acres, and protect very little of the wilderness in West Virginia’s Monongahela National Forest. Read More...

Central Georgia Wildlands Initiative

This is a critical time for wildlands in central Georgia. Weyerhaeuser Corporation recently sold 322,000 acres of forestland, including two large tracts leased by the state: the Oaky Woods and Ocmulgee Wildlife Management Areas. This region is rapidly losing land to development, road building, and mining. Read More...